UPDATE: Police find man they say nearly ran over two officers

WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) -- Wilmington Police have found a man they say tried to run over two officers this morning.

Police say the confrontation in a hotel parking lot ended with one officer firing his gun.

"Somebody pulled in in a car. It's like an old Toyota, early '80s, burgundy. He's parked. He's got a hat on. He's heavyish, middle-aged guy, and he's trying to break into cars," a caller told a 911 operator earlier this morning.

The guest staying at the hotel next to the TownePlace Suites off Eastwood Road saw a man in the parking lot checking door handles and called 911. When police arrived, they say the man made his way back to his car ignoring officers' commands and sped out of the parking lot almost running over two cops.

One of the officers fired several shots at the car, but the man got away.

"Scared me to death, because I had a room right back here," hotel guest Todd Provost said. "It was right where the action took place.""

Provost says he was asleep when he heard the gunshots.

"I used to live in LA in the city, and it's the first time I've heard gunshots in quite a while," he said. "They were that close to me. Probably 50 feet from me, so it scared me."

Shirley Moore and her family were also staying at the hotel.

"It was a scary feeling, because I've never experienced that before," Moore said.

When the gunshots woke her up she feared the worst.

"We thought someone was trying to break or enter in the hotel we was at," Moore said.

Police searched Thursday for a man they described as white male about 5'11", medium to heavy build. They say they eventually found him in Benson.

Police have not released the suspect's name yet, but they say he is on his way to the police department. No charges have been filed yet.

Police spokeswoman Linda Rawley says the officer who fired the shots is on paid leave pending the outcome of an internal investigation. She did not release his name.

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I don't understand why the officer fired his weapon. We were at the hotel when the gun fire took place. There were a lot of families in the 2 hotels. Stray bullets could of injured in ascent people. It does not say the officer was shot at or why here fired his weapon. We were very frighten.

...that he officer fired his weapon as the assailant fled and was put on leave. It's a serious incident when an officer fires his weapon and there WILL be an investigation. None of us may ever hear of the outcome, but there will be one.

Nowhere in this article does it say that an officer fired at a vehicle that was driving away from him. It says that a suspect almost ran over two officers and that an officer fired shots. I hope that you all do not have jobs that require you to pay attention to detail or not jump to conclusions.

Trigger happy cops, theres no need or call for them. He fired seveeal shots that could have hit and killed anyone elses loved ones and with no thought for anyones safety over a person fleeing and over what a guy checking door handles? Come on you have to do better than that, we need and deserve better than that. Stop. Think. Act.

Read again. The article says an officer fired because someone almost ran him over, not because the suspect was checking door handles. Running someone over (or attempting to) is deadly force, that is to be returned with deadly force until the threat has stopped. Also, there is no indication in the article or the video that anyone else was in the line of fire. That is simply an assumption. Oh how easy it is for us to sit in the comfort and safety of our homes behind our computers and Monday morning quarterback those who have to make life or death split-second decisions so we don't have to.